Concrete-transporting apparatus



Aug. 20, 1929. H. w. ST. JOHN CONCRETE TRANS PORTING APPARATUS FiledAug. 18, 1928 2 Sheets-Sheet [NI E TOR. #W W 5/10/70 M f ATTO \ QN vAug. 20, 1929. H. w. ST. JOHN CONCRETE TRANSPORTING APPARATUS Filed Aug.18, 1928 2 Sheets-Sheet INVENTOR. //e/7r BY 2 Patented Aug. 20,1929.

UNITED STATES 1,725,682 PATENT OFFICE.

HENRY w. ST. JOHN, or nnierirwarnasnnw YORK.

CONCRETE-TRANSPORTING APPARATUS.

Application filed August 18, 1928. Serial No'..800,403.

' crete without deterioration to the place where it is to beused. Trucksfor this general purpose have been extensively used. They generallyembodya cylinder adapted to serve as a receptacle for the concreteduring transportation and which cylinder is mounted for rotation on ahorizontal axis on a cradle mounted for tilting movement on the truckchassis. Suitable means is provided for imparting rotation to thecylinder in order to keep the concrete in a state of constant agitationduring transportation, so that it will not be permitted to settle,stratify or set, but is maintained by a tumbling action in propermixed'condition and ready for pouring at the point of destination,-mechanism of difierent forms being provided to permit of tilting of thecradle in order that the concrete maybe discharged by gravity from thecylinder.

In practically all trucks which have heretofore been employed for thepurpose stated,

it has been the practice to mount'the cylinders for rotation in twodistinct ways, or a combination of them. One of these constructionsconsists in providing the cylinder with axial trunnions and mountingthese trunnions in bearings fixed on rigid brackets carried by thecraddle on the truck. The other construction consists in providing theexterior of the cylinder with bearing rings which are adapted to rideupon rollers carried by the cradle of the truck. A modified constructionembodying both of these prior arrangements consists in providing theforward end of the cylinder with a trunnionoperating in a rigidlysupported bearing while the rear end of the cylinder is provided with abearing ring adapted to ride on rollers supported on the cradle. All ofthese constructions are open to one or more disadvantages. I

It is the practice in the transportation of concrete in the mannerspecified to employ cylinders of relatively large capacity and they aregenerally adapted to contain a charge of several yards of concrete. Sucha quantity of concrete in semiliquid condition weighs considerable andas the truck travels from the central mixing plant, side sway, aswell.as the sudden stopping and starting of the truck and the passage ofthe truck over uneven roads subjects the mounting of the cylinder tovery serious strains which not infrequently result in breakage of theparts.

For example, if a truck with a heavy load of concrete in its cylinder isbraked, while traveling at a 'fair speed, so that the truck is broughtto a sudden stop, the inertia or momentum of the concrete containedcauses a sudden wash of the concrete against the forward end of thecylinder with tremendous force, so much in fact that it has frequentlybeen found in practice necessary to greatly reinforce the forward end ofthe cylinder to guard against damage to it due to the conditions which Ihave described. This wash of concrete occurs of course in bothlongitudinal directions depending upon whether the truck is suddenlyaccelerated or braked. Similarly, other jars or shocks communicatedfrom'the road or due to side sway acting upon the supporting devices ofthe cylinder in such manner that it is extremely difficult in practiceto keep the trucks in condition-unless the parts are made so heavy thata great amount of excess Weight is involved in the'construetion.

WVith the foregoing considerations in mind, the object of the presentinvention is to provide transporting apparatus of the character underconsideration wherein the strains to which I have referred are socushioned that they'will not do serious damage under any conditions ofnormal operation. These objects are obtained in accordance with thisinvention by so constructing the mounting of the c linder that suchmounting will serve to a sorb or dissipate shocks which would otherwisebe transmitted from the truck chassis to versa. I

In practically carrying out the invention, I have found it highlyefiicient and desir, able to employ a novel construction which I term afloating suspension of the cylinder with respect to the truck chassisand- I so constitute this floating suspension that it will cushion anddissipate the shocks for the the cylinder and vice practical form, theapparatus of this invendrawings.

tion embodies a truck provi'ded'thereon with a pivoted cradle at thefront and rear ends of which are rigid yokes on each of which issuspended a hearing by means of a spring which is preferably of thesemielliptical type. Positioned between the yokes' is a cylinderprovided with axial trunnions extending through the bearings and aroundeach trunnion at both sides of eachhearing are coil springs. These coilsprings cushion the trunnions against axial movement with respect totheir bearings while the elliptical spring support of the bearingscushion the movement of these hearings in all other directions. a Novelmechanism also forming a part of the present invention is employed" torotate the cylinder while permitting of the floatin suspension to whichI have referred.

Features of;thei nvention, other than those specified, will be apparentfrom the hereinafter detailed description and claims, when read inconjunction with the accompanying The accompanying drawings illustratedifferent practical embodiments of the invention, but the constructionstherein shown are to be understood as illustrative, only,

and not asdefining the limits of the invention.

Figure 1 is a side elevation of the truck embodying-the presentinvention with certhe truck .on transverse pivots 3.

tain parts shown in section.-

Figure 2 is a section on the line 2--2 of F i 1. p c

Figure 3 is a section on the line 3-3 of Fig. 1. i Figure 4 is adiagrammatic view showing a modified arrangement for rotating thecylinder.

In the annexed drawings, 1 denotes the chassis of a motor truck orotherself propelled vehicle which has a suitable prime mover such as anengine (not shown). A cradle-2 is pivoted to the chassis frame hof 1scradle normally partakes of a substantially horizontal position, but maybe tilted up on its pivots by any suitable, mechanism such as ahydraulichoist 4. Mounted near the front and back ends of the cradle 2 and rigidwith the cradle are a' pair of strong,

and the rear yoke carries a spring 9. These springs are secured at theiropposite endsby means of shackles 10 to the respective yokes and theyokes are preferably made of channel section with the shackles extendinginto the channels so as to reinforce the pivots of the shackles againststrains in a direction longitudinally of the cradle.

On each of the springs 8 and 9 is mounted a bearing ll'and between theyokes is positioned a cylinder 12 provided at its opposite ends withtrunnions 14 and 15, the former of which extends through the bearing 11of the spring 8 .on the front yoke while the latter of which extendsthrough the bearing 11 of the spring 9 on the back yoke. These trunnionsare positioned coaxial of the "cylinder 12. They are of strong, rigidconstruction,- are mounted rigidly upon the opposite ends of a cylinderon suitably reinforcedend plates 16 and are of sufficient length so thatthey extend a distance beyond the opposite ends of the bearings. The endof each trunnionis provided with a head 17.

Acoil spring 18 is positioned between the head 17 of the forwardtrunnion and-the .ad-

jacent bearing 11, while the coil spring 19 described constitutes whatmay be termed a floating suspension of the cylinder 12 because thecylinder is thereby mounted for resilient and cushioned movement inevery direction. For example, in practice, the concrete 'is introducedinto the cylinder through a charging opening'provided with a suitableclosure 22 in sufficient quantities to leave appreciable air spacewithin the cylinder above the surface of the concrete.

.In fact the cylinder to give the best results should be filled moretharrhalf full, but not completely full.

It therefore follows that this relatively large body of concrete willhave considerable inertia. Even when the truck is traveling aloligroughroads, the passage of the wheels of the truck. .over uneven places in aroad will cause considerable shock and jar and if the cylinder ismounted rigidly, these shocks and jars are transmitted to the'inountin'g of the cylinder with the result that the. great'weight inthe cylinder places tremendous strains upon its mountings unless thefioating suspension to which I have referred is employed.

With the floating suspension, however, up and down, as well astransverse shocks are efficiently cushioned by the springs 8 and 9.Furthermore, when the truck suddenly stops or starts, the heavy load ofcbncrete'in the cylinder is thrown forcibly against either the ends ofwhich are firmly secured to the side front or rear end of the cylinderas the case may be. If the mounting of the cylinder is rigid, theseshocks must be borne directl by the supporting elements. With the oatingsuspension, however, these longitudinal shocks are cushioned by thesprings 18,. 19, and 21, in such manner as'to dissipate the shocksentirely and to bring the load to a state of equilibrium without shock.Similarly lateral sway due to passage of the truck over uneven roads orin turning corners sharply are taken up by the shackles 10. It thereforefollows that by the floating suspension to which I have referred, theshocks and .j ars which otherwisewoul'd have to be borne by thesupporting mechanism are so cushioned that they cando no harm to theapparatus. 7

In accordance with this invention, thecon crete is loaded into thecylinder at a central mixing station and is transported while in thecylinder to various construction jobs. It

is necessary to keep the concrete in a constant state of agitation whilethus transporting it, otherwise it would set or stratify and not onlymaterially deteriorate .but would be extremely difficult to remove'fromthe cylinder. For this purpose, the cylinder is mounted to rotate. andmechanism is provided for rotating it all the while it is transportingconcrete. This .cylinder rotatingmechanism may partake of various formswithout departing from the invention;

For example, in Figs. 1 an'd2 one form of mechanism is shown. In thesefigures, I

have shown, a friction wheel 23 preferably.

faced with rubber as shown at 24 mounted on the chassis of the truck ina manner to engage with the circumference of the cylinder when thecylinder is in horizontal posi tion. In the mounting shown in thesefigures, the driving wheel 23 is mounted on the shaft 25 supported inbearings 26. These bearings are mounted on springs 27 which extendtransversely'of the chassis andare mounted on transverse bars 28, theopposite bars of the chassis frame of the vehicle.

The bars 28 are shown as of channel section rigidly secured to thechassis frame and one of the springs 27 is associated with each of thesebars. One end of each spring is secured to a fixed pivot 29- carried bythe corresponding bar 28, while the opposite end of such spring issecured to the bar through the medium of a shackle 30, so as to permitcompression or expansion of the springs without binding. The springs'27are so tencii'cumference of the cylinder and said springs 27 will flexwith the springs 8 and 9 so as to provide driving friction between thedriving wheel and the cylinder in spite of the floating suspension ofthe cylinder.

. such, for example, as some part driven from the truck motor or from anelectric motor or other independent driving mechanism. Thus powertransmitted through the shaft 31 rotates the driving wheel 23 whichserves to tact therewith.

In the construction shown'in Figs. 1 and 2, the tilting of the cylinderto. discharge the contents thereof will lift the cylinder out ofengagement with the driving wheel 23.

However, if it is desired to employ a construction wherein the cylindermay be driven while it is in tilted position, the driving wheel maybesupported on the cradle 2 as,

shown in Figure 4. In other words, instead of mounting the bar 28 on thechassis frame as shown in Fig.2, it may be mounted on the cradle andthis will permit of driving while the cylinder is either in tilted orhorizontal position. g

It will of course be understood that the cylinder is provided with asuitable charging opening having an appropriate closure as shownat 22and that it is also provided with a discharge opening in its rear end.This discharge opening is illustrated in Fig. 2 as in the form of a gate44 hinged at 45 and adapted to be locked in closed position by a drivethe cylinder 12 through frictional conlever 48 pivoted at 47, andhavinga handle i 49 engageable with the keeper 50. A wedge 51' is formed onthe gate to insure its tight closing and the gate has a handle 46 whichloo may be grasped to assist its opening. These details of gateconstruction may of course be varied without departing from this invention which is particularly directed to the floating suspension to whichI have referred. This floating suspension will efiiciently support theconcrete carrying tanks of large capacity without subjecting theoperating or supporting mechanism to serious shocks and will thusmaterially prolong the life of the apparatus.

I wish to. call particular attention to the the fact that, the floatingsuspension of this invention automatically-compensates for the shiftingweight of the concrete within the cylinder during transportation of suchconcrete. When the .truck is traveling along a 'road, the semi-liquid 1concrete, contained within the cylinder is constantly changing positiontherein. That is to say, there is the "ever present forward and backwardwash of the concrete and this is accompanied by lateral wash in onedirection or the other and the normal lateral wash of the concreteincident torotation of the cylinder. This ever changing position of theconcrete within the cylinder brings about a corresponding constantlychanging center of gravity of the mass and as a result the line ofdirection-of such center of gravity is constantly changing weight is,carriedin the center line of the vehicle at all times irrespective ofthe lateralwash to'which I have referred. In the prior art where thecylinders are carried 'on rollers which are positioned to engage theunder side of the cylinder on either side ofthe medial line of thetruck, the lateral wash of the concrete mass is constantly transferringthe whole weight on to one of these rollers or the otherias the case maybe whereas with.

the floating suspension of this invention, the lateral wash of the massis transmitted with an equalizing force at all times to the axis of thetrunnions on which the cylinder is suspended and the unequal impositionof force such as is found in the roller mount ings of the prior art isentirely eliminated in the present construction. It therefore followsthat when the present invention is employed, the floating suspensionthereof will centralize the weight at all times irrespective oflongitudinal or lateral wash and as a result the weight will be imposedin the center of the vehicleat all times and will not .tend to placeundue stresses upon the mount.-

ing in any direction. Neither will it tend to produce side sway in thetruck with consequent tendency to top-heaviness on uneven roads.

The accompanying drawings show the in venti'on in its preferredpractical form, but the invention is to be understood as fullycommensurate with the appended claims. I wish it particularly understoodthat while the type of springs which I have shown have what I claim asnew and desire to been found to operate with high efficiency, thatsprings of other kinds may tuted without departing from this invention.Having thus fully described the invention, secure by Letters Patent is:

1. A power propelled vehicle for transporting concrete, a cylinder tocontain con} crete, and. mechanism comprising a floating suspension formounting the cylinder'for axial rotation on the vehicle, and means forrotating the cylinder, for the purpose of maintaining the concrete in aconstant state of agitation while it is being transported to precludesettling or solidification.

2. A power propelled vehicle for transporting concrete, a concretecontaining cyl- Hide! mounted on the vehicle on a substanbe substitiallyhorizontal axis extending longitudinally of the vehicle, means forrotatingthe cylinder to maintain the concrete therein in a constantstate of agitation, means i i1terposed between the vehicle and thecylinder for cushioning shocks in 'a' direction longitudinally of theaxis of the cylinder.

3. A power propelled vehicle for transporting concrete, a concretecontaining cylinder mounted on-the vehicle on a substantially ing shocksin a direction longitudinally of the axis of the cylinder and for alsocushioning against shocks'between the cylinder and vehicle in an up anddown direction.

4. In an apparatus for transporting concrete, thecombination of a'su1table power propelled vehicle, a cylinder adapted to containconcrete and provided with a discharge opening, means for mounting tlgcylinder upon a vehicle for rotation on a substantially horizontal axis,a closure for normally sealing the discharge opening, means for rotatingthe cylinder constantly while the con crete is being transported,and'means interposed between atleast the forward end of the cylinder andthe means for supporting such forward end thereof to cushion shocksimparted to the construction in a direction of the axis of rotation ofthe cylinder.

' 5. In an apparatus for transporting concrete, the combination of asuitable power propelled vehicle, a cylinder adapted to contaln concreteand provided with a discharge opening means for mounting the cylinderupon the vehicle-for rotation on a substantially horizontal axis and fortilting movement onv the vehicle, a closure-for normally sealing thedischarge opening, means for rotating the cylinder constantly while theconcrete is being transported, and means interposed between at leastthe'forward end of the cylinder and themeans for supporting such forwardend thereof to cushion shocks imparted to the construction in adirection of the axis of rotation of the cylinder, and means for tiltingthe cylinder .into a position to permit the concrete to be poured fromthe cylinder through the dischar e opening when the closure thereof isopene,

6. In apparatus for transporting concrete, the combination of a suitablepower propelled vehicle, a cylinder adapted to contain concrete andprovided with a discharge openmg, means for mounting the cylinder uponthe vehicle for rotation on a'substanti'ally horizontal axis, aelosurefor normally seal- While the concrete is being transported to ing thedischarge opening of the cylinder, means for rotatlng the cylinderconstantly means for cushioning the mounting of the cylinder againstshocks due to the wash of the concrete longitudinally of. the axis ofthe cylinder.-

7. In apparatus for transporting concrete, the combination of a suitablepower propelled vehicle, a cylinder adapted to contain concrete andprovided with a discharge opening, means for mounting the cylinder uponthe vehicle for rotation on asubstantially horizontal axis, a closurefor normally seal-- ing the discharge opening of the cylinder,

means for rotating the cylinder constantly -vehicle, a cylinder adaptedto contain concrete, means for'supporting said cylinder for rotation onthe vehicle, means for rotating said cylinder constantly while theconcrete is being transported to preclude deterioration of theconcrete,and resilient cushioning devices acting upon the cylinder in a directionlongitudinally of its axis to cushion the parts against shocks due towash of the concrete longitudinally within thecylinder, I v 9. In anapparatus for transportin concrete, a suitable power propelled wheeledvehicle, a cradle pivotally'mounted on the vehicle for tilting movement,a cylinder, means for mounting the cylinder for rotation, normally on ahorizontal axis, on said cradle, means for constantly rotating thecylinder while the concrete is beingtransported to precludedeterioration .of the con crete duringtransportation, said means formounting the cylinder on the cradle comprising yokes rigidly mounted onthe cradle at the front and back of the cylinder, a bearing associatedwith each yoke in which the cylinder is supported, and springs forsupporting said hearings on the yokes, in combination with means fortilting the cra-.

transporting condle to discharge the concrete therefrom when desired. I

10. In apparatus for transporting concrete, a suitable power propelledvehicle, a cradle mounted for tilting movement on the vehicle, yokesspaced apart on the cradle, a cylinder positioned between the yokes on anormally horizontal axis and provided at itsopposite ends with axialtrunnions, a bearing embracing each trunnion, means for resilientlymounting each bearing upon one of the yokes, and means for cushioningeach trunnion against axial movement with. respect to its bearing, incombination with means for constantly rotating the cylinder while theconcrete is being transported to preclude deterioration of the concrete,and means for tilting the cradle to discharge the concrete from thecylinder at the point of destination. r

11. In apparatus for transporting concrete, a suitable power propelledvehicle,a 1 cradle mounted for tilting movement on the vehicle, yokesspaced apart on the cradle, a cylinder positioned between the yokes on anormally horizontal axis'and provided at its opposite ends with axialtrunnions, a

bearing embracing each trunnion, a resilient swinging suspensionconnecting each bearing to the corresponding yoke, and springs forcushioning the trunnions against axial movement with respect to theassociated hearings in combination with means for constantly rotatingthe cylinder during transportation of the concrete to precludedeterioration of the concrete, and means for tilting the yoke "todischarge the concrete from the cylinder at the point of destination;

12. In concrete transporting-apparatus, a power propelled vehicle, acylinder having a floating suspension on the vehicle. and

,adapted for rotatiorr, a member for imparting rotation to the'cylinder,and means for resiliently mounting saidmember for. driving cooperationwith the cylinder irrespectiveof movement of the cylinder incident tothe floating suspension thereof.

-In testimony whereof I have signed the foregoing specification.

' 'HENRY W. ST. JOHN.

